Anil Coumar is a clinical instructor in Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences for the School of Medicine and the former director of Hall Health Mental Health Clinic. He’s also so passionate about mindfulness that he is offering this course for free to faculty and staff. This four-class series will introduce the practice of combining meditation and inquiry, which can lead to a heightened sense of well being, improved physical health, and reduced stress. It will be on four consecutive Thursdays from 12-1 p.m: July 10, 17, 24, and 31. Space is limited to a maximum of 20 participants. Register here.

Want more details? Check out the course schedule:

Week 1: Focus on Body

Introductions. Discussion of group norms & confidentiality.

Understanding stress.

Common symptoms of stress: physical, mental, emotional, and behavioral.

Mindfulness of the body – learn body scan meditation.

Week 2: Focus on Breath

Causes of stress: external and internal.

Change and stress. Time and stress.

Role of diet and exercise.

Mindfulness of breath.

Week 3: Focus on Mind

Cognitive effects of stress.

Decision-making under stress.

“Awfulizing,” “should,” “what-ifs,” and other mental traps.

Introduction to the process of Inquiry.

Week 4: Putting it All Together

Review of week 1-3.

The judge and the scientist.

Deepening inquiry.

Mindfulness and Inquiry in daily life.

Spots will be sure to fill up fast, so sign up now if you can commit to all four meetings. And thank you to Anil for so generously donating his time!

More about Anil: In addition to being a clinical instructor in Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences for the School of Medicine and the former director of Hall Health Mental Health Clinic, Anil Coumar, MBBS, MA, is a licensed mental health counselor with a private practice and a trained physician who practiced in England and India. When asked for a favorite quote, he said he loved this one from Byron Katie: “The miracle of love comes to you in the presence of the uninterrupted moment. If you are mentally somewhere else, you miss real life.”